tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13869903.post9172485300317077622..comments2024-03-28T04:15:44.459-05:00Comments on nanoscale views: Media relations at universitiesDouglas Natelsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13340091255404229559noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13869903.post-8243486623319885612012-02-07T21:07:14.120-06:002012-02-07T21:07:14.120-06:00Joerg - I agree. You'd think universities (an...Joerg - I agree. You'd think universities (and companies and journals) would have a vested interest in avoiding situations like this, since it tends to reflect on other authors.<br /><br />Don - I guess I don't see the value in being a press-release-distributor in the age of the internet. If I'm an institution with a press release to put out, doesn't it cost me essentially nothing to send it electronically to everyone? Sure, Ken Chang at the NY Times may not want me emailing him about my latest paper, but why should he or his employer a priori be more likely to respond to something from EurekAlert? (And they must be, or else EurekAlert would not have a business model.) Science Daily is pretty bad, and sometimes I wonder if New Scientist isn't almost at the same level (uncritically believing everything they're told).Douglas Natelsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13340091255404229559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13869903.post-70672829468701516142012-02-05T13:53:45.388-06:002012-02-05T13:53:45.388-06:00While I grudgingly accept the need for a media off...While I grudgingly accept the need for a media office at a research university, they have gotten out of control over the past few years. The only bar for a press release is that the researcher asks for one. The release will give an exaggerated view on impact (with a subtle "could" and "one day" here and there), and it will be farmed out by aggregators. There is no more credibility.Humbly Submittednoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13869903.post-12547156386525694792012-02-05T10:28:17.555-06:002012-02-05T10:28:17.555-06:00Good questions, overall.
However, I think you mis...Good questions, overall.<br /><br />However, I think you misunderstand EurekAlert. My take is that they, along with Newswise and the more business-oriented PRNewswire, were in fact "originally intended just to be redistributors of unedited press releases." I believe they charge a fee to the releasers, and their audience is supposed to be journalists, who one hopes will do their homework before regurgitating. These services also distributed embargoed information to validated journalists. It is true that the general public can also see these releases (once any embargo has expired), but they are clearly labeled as releases.<br /><br />Aggregators like Science Daily, however, take these same releases and wrap them in a journalistic veneer, often giving them undeserved credibility because they appear to be actual news stories. In many or most cases the aggregators do not add any value such as independent perspectives. I find this repackaging to be misleading and inappropriate, but the reader really has to take some responsibility, if they choose to get their news from such an unfiltered source.Don Monroehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14057058447791467875noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13869903.post-76043058887929549062012-02-04T16:56:19.073-06:002012-02-04T16:56:19.073-06:00Yes, this raises plenty of 'quality control...Yes, this raises plenty of 'quality control' issues. Not only for those that publish such papers, but as you say also for the press office. I was aware about strange journals publishing almost anything that comes their way, but you got to wonder about the press office. What does it say about other press releases from this institution? I am sure that they learned lessons from this, because for journals and universities alike, reputation is crucial...Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09317901010652564695noreply@blogger.com